Intendierte Lernergebnisse
Upon successful completion of the course, students should possess the ability to analyse significant issues and debates in feminist theory, both historical and contemporary. They will get involved in a diversity of empirical topics, epistemological stances, and theoretical frameworks that comprise feminist thought. This will enable students to interpret the world through the lens of diverse feminist perspectives.Generally, students will be able to gain a historical overview of the different waves, movementsand traditions of feminism, the basic theories, and concepts, authors, as well as he concepts of intersectionality, sex/gender, the lived experiences of both western and non-western women, critical epistemologies, the notions of subjectivity and otherness, and other.More specifically, students will be able to define feminist theory and read it critically; compare, contrast, and critique different feminist theorists' points of view; explain feminist epistemology and think critically about how knowledge is made; use feminist approaches to theory to think systematically about power and resistance in both public and private relationships; look at current events and cultural artefacts from a feminist point of view; and use feminist theory on their own research interests.
Lehrmethodik inkl. Einsatz von eLearning-Tools
This is a pro-seminar. The lecture sessions will involve lecturer teaching but will also incorporate participatory elements, discussions, small-group exercises, peer-groups, presentation by each student and assignments, and a final essay. Methods will include the traditional ones, but also some more experimental ones aided by online platforms (used within class, or in distance in case some of the first introductory modules are delivered online), e-moodle, or in-class methods that encourage brainstorming, polls, watching videos and films, etc. Another method is that students will be asked to deliberate and put arguments in favor of a controversial topic, and the rest of the students will have to develop counter-arguments for it, and the other way round; this will involve some theatricality, basic rhetoric, and the ability to find arguments from both sides of a theory or idea, all of which have the purpose of promoting critical thinking skills. Students will also be encouraged to keep an open eye in the news (current world situation, and topical news, social media, or more private happenings in their environment) and bring to the class relevant issues related to the topics discussed.
Inhalt/e
The borders of (contemporary) feminist thought are constantly altering. One could argue that contemporary feminism is influenced by factors such as culture, race, ethnicity, nation, and power dynamics. Conversely, contemporary feminist theorists argue on the very notion of "woman," while traditional beliefs regarding women's empowerment, voice, agency, liberation from oppression, and equality attempt to connect the lives of women across the globe. In its capacity as a social movement strategy and theoretical framework, (contemporary) feminist thought acknowledges the inherent diversity in the experienced realities of women across the globe. Simultaneously, it endeavours to foster intercommunal and cross-border solidarity among different communities.A survey of the fundamental concepts and texts of feminist theory is provided in this course. The course aims to familiarise students with some of the most seminal contributions of feminist theory, in addition to scholarly critiques and analyses of those works. An examination of the influence of postmodernism on feminist thought and the emergence of global feminism, as well as an analysis of alternatives to materialistic/egalitarian, differentialist, and liberal feminist thought, are all components of this course, as well as the historical waves and movements of feminism. The course will centre on the seminal authors and concepts that have constructed the disciplinein the last century. Students will be introduced to Contemporary Feminist Thought and a range of critiques of Modernity, such as Postmodernism, Postcolonial Theory, and Multicultural Feminism, through a thoughtful selection of readings. Significant attention will be devoted to examining the ways in which Western patriarchal social theories establish the limitations that have traditionally governed our understanding of identity, gender, sexuality, and ethnicity, as well as exploring alternative methods to conceptualise these concepts.An overview of feminist theories, concepts, types of feminism and authors will be included in the readings, such as the following: intersectionality, sex/gender, lived experiences, critical epistemologies, subjectivity, otherness, body, movements/waves of feminism, traditions of feminism, liberal feminism, Materialistic/Egalitarian Feminism, Differentialist Feminism, Marxist Feminism, Socialist Feminism, Anarchist Feminism, Radical Feminism, Lesbian Feminism, Posthuman Feminism, Postfeminism, Psychoanalytic Feminism, Ecofeminism, Queer Feminism, Transfeminism, race, class, disability, environment, Mary Wollstonecraft, Betty Friedan, Simone de Beauvoir, Sojourner Truth, Emma Goldman, Audre Lorde, Andrea Dworkin, Susan Brownmiller, Rosemarie Tong, Shulamith Firestone, bell hooks, Nancy Chodorow, Gayle Rubin, Nicole-Claude Mathieu, Christine Delphy, Germaine Greer, Luce Irigaray, Hélène Cixous, Monique Wittig, Adrienne Rich, Rosi Braidotti, Donna Haraway, Judith Butler, Linda Alcoff, Kate Manne, Maria Mies, Vandana Shiva, Anne Fausto-Sterling, Monique David-Ménard.The main aim of the course is that students will be able to define feminist theory and read it critically; compare, contrast, and critique different feminist theorists' points of view; explain feminist epistemology and think critically about how knowledge is made; use feminist approaches to theory to think systematically about power and resistance in both public and private relationships; look at current events and cultural artefacts from a feminist point of view; and use feminist theory on their own research interests.
Curriculare Anmeldevoraussetzungen
none
Literatur
Ahmed, Sara. Living a Feminist Life, Durham, NC: Duke University Press Books, 2017.Braidotti, Rosi. Posthuman Feminism. Wiley, 2022.Davis, Angela Y. Women, Race & Class. Random House, 1981.Delap, Lucy. Feminisms: A Global History. Penguin UK, 2020.Disch, Lisa, and Mary Hawkesworth (eds.). The Oxford Handbook of Feminist Theory. Oxford University Press, 2016.Drake, Jennifer, and Leslie Heywood (eds.). Third Wave Agenda: Being Feminist, Doing Feminism. University of Minnesota Press, 1997.Finlayson, Lorna. An Introduction to Feminism. Cambridge University Press, 2016.Fricker, Miranda and Jennifer Hornsby (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Feminism in Philosophy. Cambridge University Press, 2000.Gates, Henry Louis (ed.). Reading Black, Reading Feminist: A Critical Anthology. Penguin Publishing Group, 1990.hooks, bell. Feminism Is for Everybody: Passionate Politics. Cambridge, Mass.: South End Press, 2000.Humm, Maggie. Feminisms: A Reader. Routledge, 1992.Jenainati, Cathia, and Judy Groves (illustrator). Introducing Feminism: A Graphic Guide. Icon Books, 2010.Kolmar, Wendy and France Barkowski (eds.). Feminist Theory: A Reader. 3rd edition. New York: McGraw Hill, 2005.LeGates, Marlene. Making Waves: A History of Feminism in Western Society. Copp Clark, 1996.Lorber, Judith. Gender Inequality: Feminist Theories and Politics. 5th edition Los Angeles: Roxbury Publishing Company, 2005.Offen, Karen. European Feminisms, 1700–1950: A Political History. Stanford University Press,2000.Rendall, Jane. The Origins of Modern Feminism: Women in Britain, France, and the United States, 1780–1860. Macmillan Education UK, 1984.Rossi, Alice S. (ed.). The Feminist Papers: From Adams to de Beauvoir. Boston: Northwestern University Press, 1988 [1st: 1973].Sullivan, Nikki. A Critical Introduction to Queer Theory, Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2003.Tong, Rosemarie and Tina Fernandes Botts (eds.). Feminist Thought: A More Comprehensive Introduction, Routledge, 2018.Walters, Margaret. Feminism: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press, 2005.